Encounter
by TheRealRogue
Summary: Romy's first encounter. My first fic ever. Keep in mind that english is not my native language! Hugs.
1. Chapter 1: Running away

Chapter 1: Running away.

- Rogue… hey Rogue! Wake up, we're here.

She opened her eyes lazily and for a second, wondered where she was; but right away she remembered it all at once, like a punch on her stomach, and closed her eyes again for an instant.

- What time is it?- she asked.

- About… 10 pm, but that doesn't matter, just… get off and… and leave, all right?-, he told her, while taking her bag from the back seat and putting it on her lap.

- Yeah… thanks for helpin' me run 'way, an' stuff…

- Yeah, look, there's a gas station we've just passed. Go there and wait 'til morning; and then… I don't know, just take care…- Rogue thought she had never seen him so tense, but couldn't blame him for that; it was probably the first time he was doing something at Mystique's back, and something she'd certainly be not pleased with.

- I will; take care, yoahself, hein?- she said trying to smile genuinely, but not quite achieving it. When would she see him again? Maybe never; they had become good pals during all that time.

- Ok, Ok, good bye-. He wasn't looking at her eyes, and didn't want to; just wanted to finish it all as soon as possible and, for the millionth time, to begin the very hard task of trying not to think about her. With a last look at him she got off the ride, and her hand was still pushing the door to close it when the car accelerated to leave; she watched it 'til darkness swallowed it, took a deep breath and started to walk towards the opposite direction. It was a pretty cold and windy night, but she almost wasn't scared anymore.

- This is bettah than stayin' in that place; everythin' would be bettah- she thought, and smiled a bit, this time for real. No matter how hard her situation seemed (alone, almost penniless, with no place to go, in the middle of the night), she was right: now she was on her own. After walking for a couple of minutes, the gas station appeared; at that same moment a truck was arriving. The driver got off and joined another two truckers that held beer cans in their hands, and cigarettes. They all looked pretty much the same way: fat, bearded, mullet haired, wearing old checkered shirts. The men looked obnoxiously at the girl that passed by their side, but she paid no attention to it. Any other gal would have been pretty grossed out by it, no wonder why, but she didn't; she didn't have to be afraid of those kinds of things…

Rogue walked through the door of a small restaurant; there was a 24 hours store next to it, but she suddenly realized she was hungry and decided to have something to eat. It was much warmer inside; she walked towards the bottom of the room, among a few tables, under the suspicious look of an old man sat on a corner; besides him, there were only three or four other clients, and they didn't seem to notice her. The illumination was quite lugubrious, and a "good old southern song" could be heard; it was a place like stuck on the early eighties. She finally sat on a very cosy seat, and made a mental list of the provisions inside her bag: thirty bucks, a t-shirt, a sweater, a teeth brush, a hair comb, a book (Crime and punishment), and that was it.

-Good 'nough to begin a new life? We'll see… hell, what am Ah thinkin'? Ah don' even know where to start; Ah can… find a way to get to the closest town, maybe askin' a trucker to take me there, an' then… Ah can take a bus to New York. Once Ah'm there Ah gotta get a job, find somewhere to live…- Everything had been so fast (the chance and the decision to run away) that she hadn't had time to think about those important details. That very same day, at morning, she wouldn't have thought she'd be doing something like this, but the opportunity showed up and she wouldn't miss it for a thing.

-Hamburger, sandwich, fried chicken, or salad?- she hadn't seen the waitress standing besides her table; she was wearing a stereotypical pink uniform, and looked very tired.

-Am… sandwich please, an' a mokacchino- that was the only way she used to take her coffee.

-We only have black coffee-. Rogue felt tempted to ask for hot chocolate, but decided she should try to save money as much as possible.

-A glass of water, then-. The waitress left, saying nothing.

Then, Rogue realized she had been in a similar situation a few years ago, when she was 16 and had to run away from home because of her "gift". –Always running 'way… can't Ah find a place where Ah can stick 'round for a longer while?-. That time, she was much more scared and felt terribly lost, and that's what Mystique took advantage of to make Rogue part of her team and later on, to manipulate her.

The sandwich arrived, and she ate it eagerly; two clients left, one arrived, the old man on the corner started to talk to himself, and rain began to pour. When finished her food, Rogue rested her head against the wall behind her seat and closed her eyes. There was another song now, but like coming from very far away; it went something like:

"_It's not what you thought_

_when you first began it,_

_you got what you want,_

_now you can hardly stand it though,_

_by now you know_

_it's not going to stop__… _

_it's not going to stop__…_

_i__t's not going to stop,_

_'til you wise up…_

_you're sure there's a cure_

_and you have finally found it…__"_

…Suddenly she felt a bit scared again (-What if they find me?...-) Rain kept falling, and she wished she could open her eyes and be in a different place, in a different time, and definitely living a different life…


	2. Chapter 2: Making time

Hi everyone; I didn't write any comments on the past chapter 'cause I thought there'd be a special place for it, like "Author's comments" or something. Couldn't find it, so I'll do it here. If the accents sound a little weird, trust me I'm trying my hardest to make them sound right! We'll have Romyness on chapter Nº3; I think this fic will have around 6 chapters, not too long as you can see, but I'll try to do something epic later. Please review! I'd appreciate it so much; tell me what you think I can improve, what you liked, what I suck at, whatever that comes to your heads. Hugs, and hope you like it.

Chapter 2: Making time.

-Hon, it's midnight, we're closing- somebody said, shaking Rogue by a shoulder.

-Don' touch me!- she shouted loud still half slept, and when completely opened her eyes, she saw the waitress backing up confused, and a man who was cleaning up a table and lift his head to stare at her. There was nobody else in the room and no music playing anymore.

-Oh… Ah'm sorry, Ah was… Ah fell asleep, Ah'm sorry- Rogue stood up, and the man continued doing his job, not before raising an eyebrow. –How much is it, th' sandwich?... 'kay, here it is… can Ah use the bathroom foh a sec? Thanks, where is it? Thanks…- She hurried up to get there but she actually didn't need to go; just thought she had to make time pass by fast 'til dawn, and ten or fifteen minutes in the bathroom would help. There was a big round mirror in there, and Rogue took a look at herself for a few seconds like trying to recognize her own person, or better, like she hadn't seen herself in a long time and this was who she was for real, and had always been. Seeing into her own green eyes she tried to figure out what they were expressing: fear? Excitement? Sadness?... Why sadness? She had finally reunited the courage to escape, and was proud of it. –But Ah guess… it's just 'cause of mah whole weird massed up life-. She set free her long auburn hair from the pony tail she had, and the white stripes fell rebelliously on her left cheek. –Time to move on-. The idea of absorbing the restaurant's employees, and stay there sleeping or something, crossed through her mind but was quickly dismissed; she wanted to be a good girl from now on, not the one that would absorb anyone for her own stupid purposes. Actually, she didn't want to use her powers too much, and even more, she sort of wanted to forget about all the training she had learnt before.

When she got out the restaurant it was still raining, but much less than before. Trucks and cars were gone (she'd wait 'til morning to ask one of them for a ride), so she headed to the only place where there seemed to be something alive inside. Tinker bells jingled on the top of the door when Rogue opened it; she looked around: postal cards, candies, sodas, cigarettes, all kind of magazines and comics, detergent, microwave oven food, old fashioned sun eye gasses and caps, coffee, flip flops… there was a little bit of everything, a place similar to others everybody has been some time. The sales guy's face came out from behind a "Interview with the vampire?" issue with a purple cover; this gave her a good feeling, 'cause she'd already read that book. The man, probably around his fifties, gave a quick up and down glimpse at the girl, and continued reading. She immediately stepped ahead, not to look weird, randomly chose a chocolate and handed a couple of bucks to the man; he grabbed the money not even looking at her, and sank on his book again. Rogue started then to walk slowly through one of the alleys full of items, trying to seem very interested on each and every single one of them, so she could gain some more time.

- Lord, am I gonna stay here, wandering around the whole night?-. When she finished an alley, she started to do the same down another one. It smelled a bit like insecticide, and very vaguely a song could be heard; she focused on it and could recognize it:

"…_don't let it bring you down,_

_it only causes panic,_

_find someone who's coming_

_and you will come around…" _

It was good to hear it; made her feel kinda better.

-Oh, dumbass, why didn't yoah wanna come? It's all that absurd… power, or whatever, she's got on yoah. But yoah're gonna have to loose the fear one day, 'cause nobody can stand that crap all life…- All the sudden, Rogue saw lights moving outside, through the store's glass, and heard an engine's sound.

-A car… no, it's a motorbike- The person riding it got off and headed to the 24 hours, but the southerner turned and started walking towards the bottom of the place, again analyzing exhaustively each product. The little bells on the top of the door jingled again.


	3. Chapter 3: Saying hi

Please Review! Please, please, please…

Chapter 3: Saying "hi".

-"Diet Pepsi, only one calorie", hum, Ah doubt it; "Gatorade, thirsty quencher, tangerine flavour", supposedly bettah than water 'cause o' th' electrolytes: sodium, potassium; great… "Smirnoff, vodka and lemon drink", hum, nevah heard o' it, an' it's "made in Venezuela", that's quite far away…

- Bon soire; lookin' for a drink, or for some good company?

Rogue didn't realize this person was approaching to her, but when she heard his voice approximately three inches from her right ear, she achieved not to look startled. Actually, she didn't even separate her eyes from the bottle as she put it back with the rest of them, and said:

- None-, and walked away from him. –Hope he's not th' stubborn type; Ah don' have time fo' this- she told herself. But oh, she discovered he was, as saw him stepping in the middle of her way.

- Th' name's Remy; Remy LeBeau. An' yours is…?

Now Rogue had no choice but staring at him; this was a tall guy on a trench coat, maybe around 25 years old. His brow and a little bit long hair was tied behind his neck (she could see this as he made some kind of absurd reverence), but the weirdest thing… his eyes. –They're red. Could he be a…-, she was thinking, but then decided not to get too much into this; he was probably (or obviously) some player, and even if he was a saint, she just didn't want to have anything to do with no one.

- None… - she gave him the angriest look ever – of yer business. Just leave me alone, got it? –. But she didn't have time to move away, 'cause he started again.

- But it happens to be ma business now-.

- No kiddin'? An' why would that be?- she said, crossing her arms over her chest, and then immediately regretted her question: she didn't have to ask anything, just to get away from him; it was probably an impulse, being used to argue with pretty much everyone. And she regretted it even more when a grin of satisfaction appeared on his face.

- 'Cuz dis, belle fille, is my favourite drink, a hard-to-find one. An' den I step into this place an' find it on dat beautiful – he tried to grab her hand, but she didn't let him – an'… hard-to-get hand of yours, or should I say glove? I'm sure it's a matter of fate.

- Fate? Listen, why don't yah grab yer stupid beer, or… tequila…-

- It's vodka chére…

-… o' whatevah, go drink it, get drunk, crash yer bike against some wall, and nevah bug me again?-. This time Rogue decided not to walk away; she wanted him to do it. But instead, he chuckled:

- So ya saw me arrivin' on my bike? I always knew I could get a femme's attention wit' little effort, but… y're flatterin' me-. Now he had some faked-innocence look on his face. –How annoyin' can someone be?- she thought, never uncrossing her arms. - Besides, Remy's got such good instincts, an' come on, crashin' against a wall? Uh uh, that'd never happen.

- Wow, yah've got a high appreciation o' yourself, don't yah?-.

- Hey, just bein' honest! So why don't we get somethin' to drink, get to know each other more…- and then, the following conversation went so fast as a ping-pong game played by two Japanese kids, with Rogue's anger growing up more and more.

-Are yah deaf? Not interested.

- Why not?

-'Cause.

-That's not an answer.

-Yep it is!

-It's not.

-It is!

-It's not, chére.

-Don' call me that!

-Why? It shows carin'.

-Yah don' even know me!

-But I wanna.

- No, yah don'; trust me.

-Ya couldn't be dat bad.

She stopped, not knowing exactly what to say. He could see she suddenly changed her angriness for… for something else, he wasn't sure what.

- Yah don' know that-, she finally burst. Rogue expected to see a grin or something like that on his face, but no; he had become kind of… serious?

- Where're ya going?- Remy asked.

-What?

-There's no other bike, or car, or any kind o' ride outside. Are y'all alone here?-.

-What are yah, a detective?- and he was glad to finally see a tiny and almost imperceptible smile on her face. He couldn't help but chuckling again. A detective? Remy LeBeau? Yes, that was funny…

- No chere… far from dat-. There was suddenly an uncomfortable silence, since she could get that he actually meant that; what did it mean?

-Do ya have a place to go?-, he asked. And then Rogue felt suddenly threatened again, more for instinct that for other reason.

-Who… who gives you th' right to ask me dose things? Who th' hell do yah think yah're?-. More silence. But he wasn't staring at her anymore, it's was like wasn't even listening. He was looking at empty space, like trying to hear something.

-What?

-Shhhhh!- he sighed, and grabbing her by a wrist, pulled her to the bottom area of the shop.


	4. Chapter 4: Kicking butts

Chapter 4: Kicking butts.

–_Just touch him_- said a voice inside her head, but she tried to pay no attention; she rejected it with all her strength. –_You've done it already many times; one more won't hurt_-. No, she didn't want to. –_Then fight the way you were taught to-._ But she didn't want to do that either; she wanted to be a regular person, if that was even possible.

-Hey! Lemme go! Are yah insane?- Rogue yelled, shaking up and down her captive arm.

-Shhhhh!- it was the only thing the Cajun seemed to be able to say now, furrowing his brows and pulling her with more strength behind a refrigerator.

-Ah'm so not shuttin' up! What happens?-.

-Be quiet!- he said on a low voice, and then, he had a very bad idea: to cover her mouth with his hand, so she could just zip it for a second. What was wrong with this idea?: his black glove left exposed two of his fingers. Rogue realized of this when his hand was already so close from her face…

- _He's going to do it himself. Let him, and that'll be it_-, said the voice again.

-No!- she shrieked, and pushed his arm away with her free hand.

-Stay still! I'm just…- he tried to grab both of her wrists now, but she pushed him harder.

-_Fight Rogue… use your training_-.

-No! Leave me!- she then intended to punch him on the jaw with her fist, but he moved faster and didn't let her to do it.

-Whoa chere, calm down! There's…- but she kept shaking and pushing him more.

_-What do you think you're doing? Use your training, for God's sake…-._

-No, no!- she kept yelling. Remy then pushed her against the refrigerator, but she kicked him on the leg, he pulled her to a side, she slid, and the next second both of them were flat on the floor, still pushing and pulling.

-Hey, you two! Get up!- said someone, and when Rogue lift her head towards the person that talked, she could finally get it: a guy, with a bag on his left hand and a gun on his right one, pointing at them. Nobody moved.

-Aren't you listening? Eh… get your butts up-. It was a kid, maybe around 17 or 18 years old, and he looked very nervous. Remy was the first to stand up, and when he tried to help Rogue to do it, she rejected him, and did it on herself.

-Dis be what I was tryin' to tell ya- the Cajun snorted.

-Yah could've been more specific- she shot back, crossing her arms over her chest.

-Hey, hey you, stay still and… don't try anything stupid. What… what's so funny?- the kid asked Remy, who now was laughing.

- Ya- he simply said, placing himself between Rogue and the boy.

-What? Sh… shut up!-.

- Non, seriously mon ami; I mean, look at yarself: a bag, a gun, de "bad guy" attitude. Dis be pro'bly one of y'r first robberies, isn't it? Or, de first one? An' right now ya think ya've been doin' pretty well so far, steppin' in, tryin' to scare everyone out… but I'm sorry to tell ya: that's not de way a real thieve behaves. Ya're a wannabe-. The look on the kid's face grew up more and more in confusion, as Remy developed his speech. Rogue thought she should maybe run away and let them with their discussion about thievery, but decided to stay. –This's getting' interesting-, she thought.

- A real thieve don' even need a gun, when he realizes dat it's kind of an artistic thing he's dealin' with, ya get it?-. It's unnecessary to say that the kid was even more nervous and didn't know what to say. He only achieved to burst:

- I… I told you to shut up!-. But Remy paid no attention to his polite request.

- A real thieve is more like… a magician- he said, while grabbing a bag of microwave popcorn with such rapidity, that the kid wasn't sure of how the Cajun did it. Neither was Rogue.

- Don't move! Don't… what are you…?-.

Then, the gal could see how the bag of popcorn turned kind of a brilliant and blazing red colour; how Remy threw it next to the kid's feet; how he pointed the gun at the bag, and then at the two southerners, and then at the bag again; and how suddenly it burnt up, causing a big bum!, and making the little thieve to fall backwards, screaming and rolling over the floor. But Remy wasted no time, as he extended a bo-staff pole that appeared from underneath his coat, and hitting the kid's arm with it, the gun went flying all across the room. The boy was now coughing and almost crying on the floor, and his fear grew up when he felt something pressing over his chest: his attacker's left foot.

-Now, gimme the bag, go home, an' come back when you've become a pro-. The trembling kid handed the bag to the Cajun, who set him free, and standing up, he ran away without looking back. A man's face appeared from behind a tower of coke's cans.

-Oh… oh Godness… thank you… oh… thank you man…- the shop's owner was trembling too.

-Mon Dieu, dis people get all scared for nothin', don't ya think so, chere? Chere?- he turned to look at Rogue, but she wasn't there anymore; the bells jingled again, and giving a few steps forward, Remy could see Rogue closing the glass door behind her.


	5. Chapter 5: Getting closer

Hi! Just to remember you how nice it is when you guys drop me a couple of lines, or even a single line. Heck, even a single word. I hope I didn't make too many mistakes with the English, you know? I'd appreciate if you let me know about that too, please. Thanks and hugs.

Chapter 5: Getting closer.

- So he actually's a mutant; hum, but o' course he's, Ah knew it from the very beginnin'… well, who cares anyway?-. Rogue was sitting on the floor, her back against the shop's front wall. Remy's bike was right there in front of her. – What a fancy ride; Ah wonder how he got it, since he seems very fond o' stealin'-. She wasn't sure whether she wanted to meet him again or not. Now she knew they had something on common, and even though she didn't want to accept it, she stayed there for that reason. –What for? Ah don' need anyone, Ah just wanna be alone, on mah own…-. It was getting colder, and there were no cars and no other people around.

Next, she heard the door opening, then closing, and somebody sitting by her side, but Rogue didn't turn to see him. Two minutes later nobody had said a word. She could only hear a sound that went like "crunch, crunch".

-Ya want some?- Remy said, offering popcorn. She denied with her head. After one more minute of "crunch, crunch", she finally burst:

-Yah cooked those too?

-Oui, but in de traditional way. I hope I didn' scare ya with dat, ya know, de Bum!- She finally turned to stare at him, in a way he thought was rather adorable.

-No, not at all-. She wondered if she should tell him. –What do Ah have to loose, anyway?... Oh, just spit it out- she thought.

-Me too- Rogue achieved to sight.

-Ya too what?

-Yah know what Ah mean, don' gimme that look.

-Non chere, I don'. If ya could make it clearer…- after a pause, she finally said it:

-Ah'm a mutant… too-. He didn't seem surprised at this revelation.

-I kinda knew it-.

-Really? How? Oh wait, it's true, yah're a magician-. He chuckled.

-It don' take to be one to realize.

-But why?

-Dis current life style of yours; I've been dere too. I guess we've all been, at some point-.

-An'… at what point are yah now? Ah mean, it's not like Ah care, Ah'm just curious- she regretted her lack of self containment; yes, he was a mutant too, but that didn't mean they could get all friendly now. Remy threw inside his mouth the last popcorns.

-Don' worry chere, Remy understands when a femme wants to know 'bout him, I don't blame you- she rolled her eyes, and was about to tell him a couple of things, but he didn't let her -Right now I'm at a good point, compared to where I was before.

-Ummm… does that've got somethin' to do with your enthusiasm 'bout robbery?- she asked, doubting if she should get so intense; this was a total stranger!

-Ya don't miss a thin'- he simply said, and both of them stayed in silence for a few seconds. It was getting windy. He continued:

- I'm not gonna ask ya where ya come from, at least not right now, but what 'bout next? Where're ya gonna go? 'Cause I've got to get goin' now, an' I don' wanna leave ya here just like dat-.

-Ah don' need any babysitter; Ah can very well take care o' mahself, yah know?

-I'm sure 'bout dat, but don' blame me for tryin' to protect a belle femme…-he gave her a puppy-eye look. Then, he turned serious again. –So tell me, what're ya gonna do? -Rogue separated her eyes from his; she didn't know herself the answer to that question.

-Ah don' know fo' sure.

-But what have ya thought?

-Ah was plannin' on goin' to New York; Ah guess it's easier to get mixed among people there, to try to live a normal life- Remy smirked.

-Well chere, this's gotta be y'r lucky day, 'cause not only ya've met such a handsome Cajun, but he's also headin' to New York, an' he's now wonderin' if ya'd want him to give ya a ride. –She stared at him sceptically.

-Yeah, right.

-Ya don' believe me? I swear I'm goin' dere, I was on my way, dis be the highway. Besides...- he hesitated on purpose, but only to make her curious.

-Besides what?

-I was tellin' ya I'm on a good… or better, on a not too bad point now, 'cause I've found dis place, well it was more like they found me; it's for people like us, an' since ya…– Rogue didn't like how that sounded.

-No, no, no, yah're talkin' to the wrong gal if yah think Ah'm gonna go there; Ah've heard that before: "oh it's a place where we help mutants, we'll protect yah, we're like a team", no, Ah don' buy any o' that crap anymore, so if yah're on a hurry, yah can hit the road right away, an' let me deal with mah own issues, 'kay?- Remy saw how she turned kind of nervous; what had they done to her?

-It's Professor's Charles Xaviers School; ya've heard 'bout it?-. Rogue froze. Of course she had; one of her fellows at Mystique's place had talked to her about it, saying that it was actually a nice place, and that maybe they should give it a try and go there. She had also seen Xavier on the news a couple of times. She looked at him suspiciously.

-Are yah serious? Yah actually… live there?

-Yup, since about a year ago-. He then grabbed a cigarette and started to smoke it.

-Don' make yoahself the interestin' guy, an' tell me how it is; Ah mean, it's not…

-It's not like ya care- she crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes at him –Easy chere… see, Professor Xavier's a telepath; de man's got tons of money, so he has dis big mansion were we live. We learn to use our powers for de good of human kind. Zut, dat sounded so Xavier-like.

-Uh…- she sighed.

-So, what do ya say: middle of nowhere or big mansion? Getting' New York on a bus, or on dis beauty?- he said, pointing at his byke-. Stayin' here all alone, or takin' dis cajun's company?-. She rolled her eyes, but put down her view immediately. What to do?

-Non, seriously chere; it be a good place. Ya can meet everyone tomorro', an' if ya don' like it dere, ya just leave. So, what do ya say?

Rogue's brain was considering so many things at the same time, that she could hardly follow her own thoughts. She had actually heard about this Professor Xavier, but wasn't it too much of a coincidence to meet this Remy? And could she trust him? Where would she go, if not? Were this people good?... –Ah guess it's bettah to move on, than to stay in one place, waitin'-, she thought. She stood up, and Remy did the same thing quickly. They looked at each other's eyes.

-All right Cajun, yah win; let's go. An' by the way, Ah'm nobody's "chere". Mah name's Rogue.


	6. Chapter 6: Arriving home

Chapter 6: Arriving home.

-Ah said no!

-Ya sure gonna fall off if ya don', chere. What, haven't ya ever been on a byke befo'?- Rogue frowned.

-Ah used to have a byke mahself, just for yah to know.

-Wow, ya must have looked very sexy, it's almost too painful to think… ouch!- Rogue punched him hard on the back of his neck, and then showed him her fist.

-This is what's gonna be painful for yah, if yah go on with that.

-Sorry chere, can't help it… but ya've got to hold on to something anyway-. She didn't want to wrap her arms around him; no way! Being too close to people was her least favourite thing to do, and it didn't do any better if she had met this people an hour ago. So she gripped the back of the seat, and said:

-See?

-'kay, but it be a long trip, we're not exactly a mile away.

-Ah'm very comfortable like this, thank yah very much.

And then, the engine roared and they hit the road.

At the beginning Rogue was surprised at how fast they were going, so she had to move her body closer to Remy's, which didn't made her very happy, specially when she imagined the annoying grin he probably had on his face on that moment. Then, they started to go even faster, and she was about to tell him something, but she realized that he would hardly hear her, because of the speed, and the airstreams. –This damn swamp rat's gonna kill me, he seriously is- she thought. And when she realized they were approaching to a very dangerous curve, she had no to choice but to do it: wrapping her arms around his waist.

-What kind o' bike's this?- she yelled.

-De good kind,…- he said something else but she couldn't hear it.

A few minutes later, Rogue started to wonder how long would it take to get there; she didn't want to be in that position for too long, though, on the other hand, it was kinda… nice? His hair, his coat… -Don' be absurd! Stop thinking that, or Ah'm gonna punch you- she told herself shaking her head. Then, the worries came back to her mind. –Lord, am Ah doin' the right thing? Would normal people do somethin' like this? Well maybe when they're homeless… no, Ah'm rambling now. Ah just… have to trust a little bit, one last time-.

She didn't know how much time had passed (two, maybe three hours?) when she could see for the first time the lights of the city, and her heart started to beat fast. They finally slowed down a little, but Rogue was so focused on the buildings, and the streets (she'd never been to New York), that she forgot to release him from her arms, which, he thought, was really pleasant. It wasn't too long when he pulled over.-Bien chere, here we are.

-"Xavier Institute for higher learning"-, she read.

-See? Now, we can' go in through de front gate at dis hour, so we'll go here-, and a couple of minutes later, they were on a garage. Rogue jumped off the bike, and while Remy parked it, she took a glimpse around. There was a gorgeous sportive car.

-Wow… nice.

-Yeah, dat's Cyke's girlfriend, I mean, car. He loves it more dan he loves Jean. Now… we're not supposed to bring people without askin' first, but…

-Great Cajun, why didn' yah tell me that?

-…But I guess they'll make an exception! We'll explain tomorrow…

-No, yah'll explain tomorrah, dis was yer idea.

-Hey relax chere! Come on, let's go in- Rogue narrowed her eyes. She was there already, wasn't she? What else could she do?

She followed him through an alley, then up the stairs and they got to the kitchen.

-Ya hungry?- he asked on a low voice, but she denied with her head. Out of the kitchen, there was another alley and then a living room.

-Wow this is like a museum or somethin'- she pointed out, and followed him up the main stairs. Once they were up they arrived to another alley, and putting a finger in front of his mouth, he asked her to be quiet and to follow him.

-Hey where're we goin'?- she asked. He only smirked, and continued walking. –All right, whatevah you say, mistah player-, she thought.-Sorry Ah'll be disappointin' yah-. They finally stopped in front of a door, he opened it, and they came in. It wasn't as luxurious as the rest of the house, but there were plenty of electronics.

-Where're we supposed to be, Swamp rat?- she burst, crossing her arms over her chest.

-Never been called dat way chere, but I kinda like it- he said, smiling. She only pierced him with her eyes, and he lifted his hands in surrender.

-Oh don' get me the wrong way! See, I don' have de keys for de empty rooms, so where was I gonna left you sleepin'? On de kitchen? De stairs? So I thought my bedroom with be cosy enough fo' both o' us, don' ya think so? –.

-Whatevah- she said, putting her bag on the floor and sitting on a chair; she glimpsed at the huge bed, and then back at the Cajun.

-Come on chere, Remy still's got some chivalry- he smirked, and unmade the bed. Then, he put the bedcover on the floor. –See, I'll sleep here- she was about to protest but he spat:-Don' worry, I've been worst. Come on, make yourself comfortable-. Rogue lowed her view to her shoes. She felt so weird…

-It doesn' matter anyway- she let him know, on a confident tone of voice.

-What doesn' matter?- he took off his coat and his shoes.

-Ah didn' tell yah 'bout mah mutant… thing.

-Non. What 'bout it?

-When…-she sighed. –When Ah touch people, skin to skin, Ah suck out their memories, their life force, an' they stay with me, forever; an' if it's a mutant, Ah also absorb his powers, but only fo' a while; a couple o' hours at most. An'… in any case, the person swoons in pain, an' if Ah touch'im fo' too long, he could get a coma. Or die. An', well, that's it.- She sat on the bed and started to take off her shoes. From the floor, Remy was staring at her.

-Wow… Dat's something – he said.

-Yup. Ah hope Ah didn't scare yah with that- she said with a lifted brow.

-Non, not at all chere. I swear-.

She took off her sweater, and rolled under the blankets. They smelled really good, as well as the soft pillows. Closing her eyes, she decided not to think about anything, either about what she had left behind, or what was coming next. She just wanted to sleep, to sink into a place where no thoughts, no worries, would bother her.

- Night, swamp rat.- She murmured.

- Night chere… Rogue. An' it don' scare me, seriously-.

The end. ;-)

Well! I guess that's it!. I'm not sure if the ending is totally ok like that, but I kinda like it, what do you think? Thanks to all the reviewers, it's so exciting to get your feedbacks, really :-) I didn't describe with to many details the entrance to the city, 'cause, well, I've never been there! But I put it in sort of a general way. Thanks so much again for reading my work. I'll be starting another story maybe in a week, 'cause I'm on vacations now :-) So, hugs, and thanks!


End file.
